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The battle against junk fees is part of President Joe Biden's administration's effort to ease strains on voter pocketbooks as an election year approaches. Taking on "junk fees" gives Biden and his allies fodder to show they are helping people tackle costs as many Americans are dissatisfied with his economic stewardship. The administration has previously proposed a rule to require airlines to disclose fees upfront. The agency estimated the fees cost consumers tens of billions of dollars annually on items such as hotel resort fees. "These junk fees function as an invisible tax that quietly inflates prices across the economy," FTC Chair Lina Khan told reporters on a conference call.

Persons: Joe Biden, Jonathan Ernst, Biden, Joe Biden's, Lina Khan, Diane Bartz, Jeff Mason, Douglas Gillison, Richard Chang Organizations: U.S, Fire Prevention, Eisenhower, White, REUTERS, Companies United, Democrat, Federal Trade Commission, FTC, Consumer Financial, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Companies United States, America

☆ Maps of the 2023 ‘Ring of Fire’ Solar Eclipse
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-11 | by ( Jonathan Corum | Katrina Miller | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +13 min

Maps of the 2023 ‘Ring of Fire’ Solar EclipseOn Saturday, Oct. 14, an annular or “ring of fire” solar eclipse will sweep across much of the Western Hemisphere. Viewers outside the path of annularity will see the crescent sun of a partial solar eclipse. The map below shows the path of the eclipse, and the approximate local time when the ring of fire will be visible. NEV. CALIF. Ely Los Angeles Las Vegas Salt Lake City San Diego WYO. Corpus Christi MEXICO 12:00 p.m. MISS.

Persons: Eugene MINN, Louis KAN, Butte Eugene, Ely San Francisco Columbus, Charlotte N.C, Casper, KAN, Torreón, Torreón San Antonio Austin, Eugene Medford, Central Time TEXAS Dallas Torreón, Central Time TEXAS Dallas Torreón San Antonio Austin Organizations: Central, Central America, Viewers, Edmonton BRITISH COLUMBIA SASKATCHEWAN ALBERTA Vancouver, Regina, Seattle Winnipeg Shadow, Ottawa VT, Toronto Medford Boston, Minneapolis S.D ., New York Chicago Des Moines Philadelphia, Reno Salt Lake City NEB . Sacramento OHIO Omaha N.J, Ely, Ely UTAH Columbus San, Indianapolis NEV, Ocean, Fresno COLO, Richmond Louisville St, Las Vegas, Alamos, Flagstaff Santa Fe Los Angeles TENN ., Memphis Albuquerque Columbia, OKLA, San Diego Little Rock, Atlanta Birmingham N.M, Lubbock MISS, Tucson Las, Dallas Jackson ALA, El, El Paso Midland, Odessa, Central Time, Houston New, Tampa Beeville, Corpus Christi, Tampico, Mérida, Mérida Guadalajara JAMAICA, Mexico City Toluca, Puebla Chetumal, Tegucigalpa Guatemala, SALVADOR, NICARAGUA PANAMA, Time, Time Panama City, Edmonton, Edmonton BRITISH COLUMBIA ALBERTA Vancouver SASKATCHEWAN, Calgary MANITOBA Regina QUEBEC ONTARIO Seattle Winnipeg Shadow, Spokane Missoula Portland MAINE Montreal, Boise Toronto, S.D . Minneapolis, S.D . Minneapolis Rapid City N.Y . IDAHO Buffalo, New York Chicago Philadelphia Des Moines Reno, Ely San, Ely San Francisco Columbus UTAH, Time Fresno Richmond Louisville St, Vegas CALIF, Los Alamos Nashville, Santa Fe Los Angeles TENN ., Phoenix San Diego Little Rock, Lubbock Tucson Birmingham, MISS, Dallas Midland Jackson ALA, Time Austin, Time Austin Hermosillo New, Antonio, Tampa, Corpus Christi Miami, Mexico City, Managua Pacific, Pacific Time, Pacific Time BRITISH COLUMBIA Vancouver Seattle Portland, Spokane Medford, Calgary San, Calgary San Francisco Sacramento Missoula, Ely Los Angeles Las, Flagstaff, S.D, Denver, Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs Tucson Pueblo, Colorado Springs Tucson Pueblo Los Alamos Albuquerque NEB, Wichita Kansas City Midland Oklahoma City Odessa, Central Time TEXAS, ARK, Torreón San Antonio Austin Little, Laredo Monterrey, Houston, Christi, Jackson León, New, New Orleans Tampico Mexico City, Tampa Campeche Mérida, Miami Cancún, Havana, SALVADOR Tegucigalpa, Eugene Medford Spokane, San Francisco Sacramento Reno, MONT . IDAHO Fresno, Flagstaff Durango Phoenix Denver, Tucson Pueblo, Midland Oklahoma City Odessa, Central Time TEXAS Dallas, Central Time TEXAS Dallas Torreón San, Laredo Monterrey Beeville Houston, Tampico Mexico City, Campeche Mérida, COSTA RICA, Pacific, San Francisco Sacramento Reno Boise CALIF ., San Francisco Sacramento Reno Boise CALIF . IDAHO Fresno, Portland Toronto, Chicago Denver New, Francisco UNITED STATES, Los Angeles Dallas Atlanta, Austin Houston San, Gulf of Mexico Miami, MEXICO Havana, COLOMBIA Bogotá, Natal Cali, Manaus, Salvador, Portland, Denver New, Angeles Phoenix Atlanta Dallas, Time San, Gulf of Mexico Miami MEXICO Havana, Bogotá Natal, Cali Recife, Manaus Quito, ECUADOR Salvador Pacific Ocean BRAZIL PERU Brasília, Pacific Time Chicago Denver, New York, CANADA, STATES, NASA, Goddard, University of Arizona, NOAA Locations: Oregon, Texas, of Mexico, Central, Calgary, Regina MANITOBA ONTARIO QUEBEC, Seattle, Pacific Time Spokane Missoula N.D . MAINE Portland MONT, Bismarck Butte, Eugene, Ottawa, Boise, Minneapolis S.D, Minneapolis S.D . IDAHO Rapid City N.Y, Buffalo CONN . Milwaukee WYO, Casper Detroit IOWA, New York Chicago, Reno Salt Lake City NEB . Sacramento OHIO, Ely UTAH, Ely UTAH Columbus San Francisco, Denver, Ocean Kansas, Richmond, Louis KAN . VA, CALIF . KY, Las, Las Vegas Durango Wichita, N.C, Flagstaff Santa Fe Los Angeles, Flagstaff Santa Fe Los Angeles TENN . Oklahoma, Memphis, San, Lubbock, Tucson Las Cruces, El Paso, El Paso Midland LA, Odessa San Angelo, Houston New Orleans San Antonio Chihuahua, Tampa Beeville FLA, Corpus, Corpus Christi Laredo, Miami Gulf, Mexico Monterrey, Havana MEXICO CUBA, Mérida Guadalajara, Campeche, Mexico, Puebla, BELIZE HONDURAS, GUATEMALA, Ocean Managua, NICARAGUA, NICARAGUA PANAMA COSTA RICA, Time Panama, Time Panama City San, Edmonton BRITISH, Spokane Missoula Portland MAINE, Spokane Missoula Portland MAINE Montreal MONT, N.D, Bismarck, Butte, Butte Eugene MINN, Boise Toronto Boston Medford, S.D, S.D . Minneapolis Rapid City N.Y, S.D . Minneapolis Rapid City N.Y . IDAHO Buffalo CONN . Milwaukee WYO, Salt Lake City NEB . OHIO, Omaha, Ely San Francisco, W.VA . Kansas, Time, Vegas, Durango KY, Wichita, Los, Santa Fe Los Angeles, Santa Fe Los Angeles TENN . Oklahoma, Flagstaff ARK, Phoenix, Atlanta, TEXAS, El Paso LA, Time Austin Hermosillo, Time Austin Hermosillo New Orleans Houston Chihuahua, Tampa FLA, Gulf of Mexico Monterrey, JAMAICA Guadalajara, Mexico City Campeche, BELIZE, HONDURAS, Tegucigalpa, Managua, NICARAGUA PANAMA, COSTA RICA, Pacific Time BRITISH, Pacific Time BRITISH COLUMBIA Vancouver Seattle Portland Eugene, Spokane, Calgary San Francisco Sacramento, Calgary San Francisco Sacramento Missoula Reno Boise IDAHO Butte Fresno, NEV . CALIF, Ely Los Angeles, Ely Los Angeles Las Vegas Salt Lake City San Diego WYO . UTAH, Rapid, Flagstaff Durango, COLO, Colorado Springs Tucson, Colorado Springs Tucson Pueblo Los Alamos, Santa Fe N.M, Hermosillo Las Cruces Omaha, El Paso Chihuahua Lubbock, Wichita Kansas City Midland Oklahoma City Odessa San Angelo, Torreón San, Houston MEXICO, New Orleans Tampico Mexico, New Orleans Tampico Mexico City Puebla, FLA, Miami, Havana GUATEMALA, CUBA, HONDURAS Managua, JAMAICA COSTA RICA, Panama, PANAMA, COLOMBIA, Pacific, Pacific Time Seattle Portland, San Francisco, San Francisco Sacramento Reno Boise, MONT . IDAHO, Ely Los Angeles Las Vegas Salt, WYO . UTAH, Flagstaff Durango Phoenix, Tucson Pueblo Los Alamos Albuquerque Santa Fe, Las Cruces, Midland Oklahoma City Odessa OKLA, Angelo, Central Time TEXAS Dallas Torreón San Antonio, Laredo Monterrey Beeville, Corpus Christi MEXICO, Tampico Mexico, GUATEMALA BELIZE, COSTA, San Francisco Sacramento Reno Boise CALIF, San Francisco Sacramento Reno Boise CALIF . IDAHO, Tampico, South America, Brazil, Chicago Denver New York, Francisco, Austin Houston San Antonio, Gulf of Mexico, MEXICO, JAMAICA BELIZE, HONDURAS GUATEMALA, PANAMA COSTA RICA, VENEZUELA, Recife, Manaus Quito, ECUADOR, Ocean PERU, Rio de Janeiro BOLIVIA, Toronto, Denver New York, Time San Antonio, Gulf of Mexico Miami MEXICO, Mexico City BELIZE JAMAICA, ECUADOR Salvador Pacific Ocean BRAZIL PERU, Havana, Mexico City BELIZE, PANAMA COSTA RICA VENEZUELA, Cali, Natal, Salvador BRAZIL, Mexico MEXICO, Time COLOMBIA BRAZIL, United States, New York City

Tens of millions in the Americas will have front-row seats for Saturday's rare “ring of fire” eclipse of the sun. It’s a prelude to the total solar eclipse that will sweep across Mexico, the eastern half of the U.S. and Canada, in six months. HOW TO PROTECT YOUR EYES DURING THE ECLIPSEBe sure to use safe, certified solar eclipse glasses, Lockwood stressed. April’s total solar eclipse will crisscross the U.S. in the opposite direction. Almost all these places missed out during the United States’ coast-to-coast total solar eclipse in 2017.

Persons: —, NASA’s Alex Lockwood, Lockwood, Judy Eychner, Eychner, It’s, ”, Madhulika Guhathakurta Organizations: Corpus Christi, ECLIPSE, NASA, Kerrville, U.S, Riddle, Associated Press Health, Science Department, Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science, Educational Media Group, AP Locations: Americas, U.S, Central, South America, Oregon, Brazil, Mexico, Canada, North, Nevada , Utah, New Mexico, Texas, slivers, Idaho , California, Arizona, Colorado, Gulf of Mexico, Corpus, Yucatan, Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Hawaii, Central America, San Antonio, Kerrville, Pacific, Oklahoma , Arkansas , Missouri , Illinois , Indiana , Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, New England, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, States, Alaska, Antarctica

☆ ‘Ring of fire’ annular eclipse: Here’s where to see it
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-07 | by ( Terry Ward | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Path of the ‘ring of fire’ eclipseBehold the beauty of an annular solar eclipse. For many, the event is being seen as a sort of warm-up for the 2024 total solar eclipse, which professor Mark Littmann calls “the gold standard” of eclipse viewing. It gives you a kind of an omen of what a total eclipse would look like.”Viewing an annular eclipse is far from routine: The next one won’t happen over the contiguous United States until 2046. Corpus Christi, TexasCorpus Christi residents and visitors will among the last to witness the annular eclipse on the US mainland. Santa Fe National Park, PanamaSanta Fe National Park in Panama will also enjoy the spectacular event.

Persons: Mark Littmann, ”, ” Littman, Debra Ross, ” Ross, Richard Tresch Fienberg, Bryce, ” Clark, Dave Clark, Del, Campspot, Yogi Bear’s, Clark, Christi, Chichén, Matthias Kestel Organizations: CNN, University of Tennessee, North, Eclipse, Task Force, “, CNN Travel, Utah, Capitol, Navajo Tribal, Boulder Mail, NASA, NOAA, Roswell Public Library, Grande Recreation, Alamo Beer Company, Omni, Corpus Christi, Christi, UNESCO, Santa Fe, Panama Santa Fe Locations: United States, Oregon , New Mexico, Texas, Antonio , Texas, Qingdao, Shandong Province, China, Oregon, Central, South America, Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Colombia, Brazil, Arizona, New Mexico , Utah, Colorado, Boulder, Bryce, annularity, Albuquerque, Roswell , New Mexico, New Mexico, Roswell, Grande, Antonio, San Antonio, Jose, Del Rio, Kerrville, Guadalupe, Bandera, Garner, Corpus Christi , Texas, Christi, Corpus Christi, Mexico, Corpus, North Padre, Uzmal, Mérida, Edzná, Campeche, of Mexico, Santa, Panama Santa, Santa Fe

The message is one more indication of the political and security challenges the U.S.-Mexico border has presented for President Joe Biden. The Biden administration this week took two actions seen by many as moving to the right on immigration. The White House counters that migration has surged across the Western Hemisphere due to regional challenges out of the administration's control. So they are on the streets.”Despite his 2020 promises on the border, Biden has long been more moderate on the issue than some in his party. It hasn’t worked for them before and it won’t work for them this cycle either,” said Pili Tobar, a former senior Biden White House official and Democratic strategist.

Persons: Donald Trump, ” It’s, Sherrod Brown, “ Ohioans, ”, Joe Biden, Biden, Donald Trump’s, Veronica Escobar, ” Biden, Trump, “ MAGA, Donald Trump’s playbook, Kevin Munoz, Trump’s, Eric Adams, implore, “, Escobar, Auri Lugo, Lugo, she's, Barack Obama, hasn’t, Pili Tobar, ___ Weissert, Linley Sanders Organizations: MIAMI, Border Patrol, Sen, Ohio Democrat, Democrat, PAC, White, of Homeland Security, Biden, Congress, “ MAGA Republicans, Trump, Conservative, Democratic, Republican, O’Hare, New York, Marquette Law School, Republicans, Senate, AP VoteCast, Biden White House, Associated Press Locations: U.S, Ohio, Mexico, South Texas, Venezuela, Veronica Escobar of Texas, El Paso, Chicago, New, New York City, VoteCast, Charlotte , North Carolina, Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Colombia, Washington

Deal negotiations between Exxon and Pioneer are advanced but have not yet led to an agreement, Reuters reported on Thursday. These transactions were eventually allowed to be completed, and the regulator has not sued to thwart an oil and gas production deal since 2000. The lawyers and experts interviewed said the FTC would face an uphill struggle in challenging Exxon's attempted acquisition of Pioneer. "The modern U.S. experience is that oil and gas deals of any notable size get a close look. It sued to block the merger and only agreed to drop its objections after BP offered to divest oil production acreage in Alaska.

Persons: Joe Biden, Janet Yellen, Leah Millis, producer's, Lina Khan, Andre Barlow, Doyle, Barlow, Mazard PLLC, Sheldon Whitehouse, William Kovacic, George Washington, consultancies Wood MacKenzie, David Kass, Diane Bartz, David French, Mike Stone, Greg Roumeliotis, Marguerita Choy Organizations: Treasury, White, REUTERS, Exxon Mobil, Natural Resources, Exxon, Pioneer, Reuters, Federal Trade Commission, Democratic, George, Companies, Activision, FTC, Atlantic, BP, RBC Capital Markets, Chevron, PDC Energy, University of Maryland, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, U.S, Atlantic Richfield, Alaska, West Texas, New Mexico, Rystad, Denver, Julesburg, Washington ,, Atlanta

☆ As US and Mexico seek more migrant deportation flights, Venezuelans press on
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-06 | by ( Elida Moreno | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

On Thursday, the U.S. said it was restarting deportations of Venezuelans who cross the U.S.-Mexico border unlawfully. Mexico, on Friday, said it was seeking to return migrants to Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela. A record of 417,000 migrants have crossed the Darien Gap this year, more than double the number in all of last year. "Crossing the Darien is hell," said Panama President Laurentino Crotizo in a statement, after touring the area via plane with Costa Rica counterpart Rodrigo Chaves. In the last three weeks, more than 27,000 migrants have been "persuaded to get down from trains," INM said.

Persons: Laurentino Cortizo, Rodrigo Chaves, Lajas, Sherly, Kelvin Romero, Laurentino Crotizo, Ana Cordova, INM, Elida Moreno, Valentine Hilare, Beth Solomon, Stephen Eisenhammer, Sandra Maler Organizations: Costa Rica, REUTERS Acquire, Migration Institute, Ore, Thomson Locations: Panama, Costa, Darien province, U.S, Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil, Cuba, Nicaragua, Darien, Costa Rica, Venezuelan, Meteti, Mexico City

☆ Mexico seeks diplomatic arrangements to return LatAm migrants
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] Agents from Mexico's National Institute of Migration (INM) carry out an operation on the banks of the Rio Bravo river, the border between Mexico and the United States, in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico October 5, 2023. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez Acquire Licensing RightsMEXICO CITY, Oct 6 (Reuters) - Mexico's national migration institute (INM) on Friday said it has asked the foreign ministry to make diplomatic arrangements with Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela for the countries to accept migrant return flights. In the last three weeks, more than 27,000 migrants have been "persuaded to get down from trains," INM said in a statement. INM said it sought help from the ministry so that Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela would accept "assisted returns via air." INM also said it had hired charter planes and buses to transport migrants within Mexico, as well as to their home countries.

Persons: Jose Luis Gonzalez, INM, Diego Ore, Brendan O'Boyle, Beth Solomon, Isabel Woodford Organizations: Mexico's National Institute of Migration, REUTERS, MEXICO CITY, Thomson Locations: Rio Bravo, Mexico, United States, Ciudad Juarez, MEXICO, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela, U.S

☆ As Mexico cracks down on migrants, AMLO gains leverage with Washington
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-05 | by ( David Shortell | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

And right now that leverage is around migration,” said Andrew Selee, the president of the nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute. Members of the Mexican National Guard stand on the border between Mexico and Guatemala to prevent the crossing of migrant caravans on October 21, 2022. “The Mexico southern border pretty much was the US southern border,” Meyer said. “What we are looking for is to reach an agreement to confront the migration phenomenon by addressing the causes,” López Obrador said at a news conference. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to travel to Mexico this week along with other cabinet secretaries and meet with López Obrador.

Persons: Biden, ”, Andrew Selee, Stringer, George W, Bush, Vicente Fox, Maureen Meyer, ” Meyer, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Donald Trump, López Obrador, Alicia Bárcena, Bárcena, ” López Obrador, Elizabeth Sherwood, Randall, Antony Blinken, ” Selee, Lopez Obrador, “ López, Arturo Sarukhán, López Obrador’s, Critics, Ned Price, Blinken, ” Price, ” Sarukhán, “, ‘ Organizations: Mexico City CNN, Ciudad, Mexican, Institute, Mexican National Guard, Getty, Washington Office, US, Washington, CNN, Bloomberg, United Nations, Refugees, Mexican Supreme, State Department, White Locations: Mexico, Washington, Guatemala, AFP, Central America, Caribbean, America, United States, Honduras, El Salvador, Ecuador, Venezuela, Colombia, El Paso , Texas, Nicaragua, Cuba, Costa Rica, Mexican

Aslan Bzhania, the self-styled president of Russian-backed Abkhazia, said an agreement had been signed for a permanent naval base in the Ochamchira region. Three of the Black Sea littoral states are NATO members - Turkey, Bulgaria and Romania. The news of the Russian base at Ochamchira, where the Soviet Union had a naval base, could indicate Russia is seeking alternatives to Sevastopol while also expanding its military presence down the Black Sea coast towards Turkey. The Wall Street Journal reported that Russia had withdrawn the bulk of its Black Sea Fleet from its main base in annexed Crimea due to Ukrainian attacks. At his meeting with Bzhania on Wednesday, Putin did not say anything about a naval base.

Persons: Izvestiya Putin, Vladimir Putin, Aslan Bzhania, Bzhania, Izvestiya, Putin, Guy Faulconbridge, Gareth Jones Organizations: Abkhazia Abkhaz, Ukrainian, Russian Navy, NATO, Soviet, Street Journal, Thomson Locations: Abkhazia, Russia, Sevastopol MOSCOW, Georgian, Sevastopol, Moscow, Ukraine, Ochamchira, South Ossetia, Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, Georgia, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Nauru, Syria, Soviet Union, Crimea

A redacted transcript unsealed late on Wednesday showed DuckDuckGo had struck a deal with Apple in 2014 to be shown as an option on Apple devices. Soon after, DuckDuckGo began pressing Apple to be made the default choice for users who wanted to work in privacy mode, which limited data collected on the user. DuckDuckGo has about 2.5% of the search market, he testified. In those meetings, Weinberg said, Apple executives would bring up the concern that its distribution agreements with Google may bar the change. The Justice Department has said that Google, which has some 90% of the search market, pays some $10 billion annually to Apple, other smartphone makers and others to be the default search.

Persons: Eric Gaillard, DuckDuckGo, Gabriel Weinberg, Weinberg, Apple, Apple's John Giannandrea, Bing, Giannandrea, Diane Bartz, Richard Chang, Marguerita Choy Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Apple, Google, Thomson

REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Oct 5 (Reuters) - A former executive at Samsung Electronics' venture capital arm who proposed that mobile app developer Branch Metrics' software offering be expanded in Samsung smartphones faced pushback due to pressure from Google, he said on Thursday in a landmark antitrust trial against the Alphabet (GOOGL.O) unit. Patrick Chang, who worked at Samsung Next to invest in innovative companies, had urged the parent company (005930.KS) to expand the offerings of Branch, which can search within apps, to its Android smartphones. Chang testified that Samsung also faced pushback from wireless carries, like AT&T, which sell Android phones. In its questioning, the Justice Department showed an August 2020 email by Samsung executive David Eun, who complained that "Google is clearly buying its way to squelch competitors." Chang testified during the fourth week of a more than two-month trial in which the U.S. Justice Department is seeking to show that Google abused its monopoly of search and some search advertising.

Persons: Gonzalo Fuentes, Patrick Chang, Alexander Austin, Branch, Austin, Chang, David Eun, Diane Bartz, Richard Chang Organizations: Google, Viva Technology, Porte de, REUTERS, Rights, Samsung Electronics, Samsung, Samsung Next, Metrics, Justice Department, U.S . Justice Department, Thomson Locations: Porte, Paris, France

An illuminated Google logo is seen inside an office building in Zurich, Switzerland December 5, 2018. The Justice Department has accused Google of manipulating online auctions - a multibillion dollar industry dominated by Google - with these formulas to favor its own bottom line. Dahlquist asked Juda if they had introduced changes to ad sales in a way that raised the cost-per-click by a consumer that advertisers pay. But Wendy Waszmer, a lawyer for Google, asked Juda on Wednesday afternoon on if there were ways that his ads quality team could raise prices unilaterally. Google's advertising business has been criticized by advertisers and website publishers for a lack of transparency, with both accusing Google of siphoning off too much revenue.

Persons: Arnd, Adam Juda, David Dahlquist, Juda, Dahlquist, Wendy Waszmer, Diane Bartz, Aurora Ellis Organizations: REUTERS, WASHINGTON, U.S . Justice Department, The, Google, Justice, European Union, LTV, Thomson Locations: Zurich, Switzerland, Washington, United States

[1/2] The Microsoft logo is seen at the Microsoft store in New York City, July 28, 2015. REBUFFED BY APPLENadella also testified that Microsoft had sought to make its Bing search engine the default on Apple (AAPL.O) smartphones but was rebuffed. On laptops, most of which use Microsoft operating systems, Bing is the default search engine and has a market share below 20%, Nadella acknowledged. Nadella became CEO of Microsoft in 2014, long after the tech giant faced its own federal antitrust lawsuit. As Google, which was founded in 1998, became an industry leading search engine, the two became bitter rivals.

Persons: Mike Segar, Satya Nadella, Nadella, U.S . Justice Department's, APPLE Nadella, John Schmidtlein, Google's, Schmidtlein, Bing, Amit Mehta, Diane Bartz, Christina Fincher, Deepa Babington Organizations: Microsoft, REUTERS, Google, U.S . Justice, Apple, APPLE, Bing, Verizon, BlackBerry, Nokia, District of Columbia, Thomson Locations: New York City, WASHINGTON, U.S, Bing, OpenAI

Nadella was dismissing an argument that Google has made - that it is easy to change defaults on devices. He said that Microsoft, itself a tech powerhouse, had sought to make its Bing search engine the default on Apple (AAPL.O) smartphones but was rebuffed. The clout in search makes Google a heavy hitter in the lucrative advertising market, boosting its profits. "You get up in the morning and you brush your teeth and you search on Google," he added in a reference to Google's dominance in search. As Google, which was founded in 1998, became an industry leading search engine, the two became bitter rivals.

Persons: Mike Segar, Satya Nadella, U.S . Justice Department's, Nadella, Amit Mehta, Bing, Diane Bartz, Christina Fincher, Deepa Babington Organizations: Microsoft, REUTERS, U.S ., Google, Apple, District of Columbia, Thomson Locations: New York City, WASHINGTON, U.S, OpenAI

☆ Number of migrants crossing Panama's Darien Gap surpasses 400,000 to record high
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-29 | by ( Elida Moreno | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The year-to-date figure of 402,300 migrants is almost double the number for the whole of 2022. The United Nations had estimated in April that the number of migrants for the entire year would be 400,000. Most of the migrants traversing the dangerous stretch of jungle are Venezuelans, with others from Ecuador, Haiti and other countries, Panama's security ministry has said. These measures follow a two-month program launched in April by the United States, Panama and Colombia to tackle undocumented immigration. Some African and Cuban migrants and asylum seekers heading to the United States told Reuters they were flying into Nicaragua to bypass the perils of the Darien Gap.

Persons: Adri, Rodrigo Chaves, Biden, Elida Moreno, Valentine Hilaire, Miral Organizations: REUTERS, PANAMA CITY, United Nations, Reuters, Thomson Locations: U.S, Acandi, Colombia, PANAMA, Panama, United States, Ecuador, Haiti, Costa Rica, Darien, Mexico, Nicaragua

Ciudad Hidalgo, Mexico CNN —A couple of dozen people pile into a van meant for 13. The families grab their belongings and head along a tarmacked path as we join them, long grass mostly hiding them from the view of the highway and Mexican officials. Occasionally, Mexican officials shout out across the grass to the walkers and tell them to come back to the main road. This static game of cat and mouse will play out several times past several checkpoints on the route. The migrants CNN spoke with said this was just another bump in their long road, another set of obstacles that will likely make what is generally a one-hour drive last the whole day.

Persons: Mexico CNN —, They’ve, –, crouch, ”, Yeimiler Rodríguez, “ Organizations: Mexico CNN, Ciudad, CNN Locations: Ciudad Hidalgo, Mexico, Guatemala, Tapachula, United States, Venezuela, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras

Microsoft logo is seen on a smartphone placed on displayed Activision Blizzard logo in this illustration taken January 18, 2022. The case is set to be heard 20 days after an appeals court rules on whether the deal may go forward. The FTC had fought the deal in district court but lost and appealed. "We have full confidence in our case and the deal's benefits to gamers and competition," a Microsoft spokesperson said by email. The FTC said in a statement it continued to believe that the deal was "a threat to competition" and so was putting the matter on its calendar.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Victoria Graham, Diane Bartz, David Holmes, Richard Chang Organizations: Microsoft, Activision, REUTERS, Rights, U.S . Federal Trade Commission, FTC, Markets Authority, Ubisoft Entertainment, Thomson Locations: U.S, London

A woman holds her smart phone which displays the Google home page, in this picture illustration taken February 24, 2016. The testimony came during the third week of a more than two-month trial in which the U.S. Justice Department is seeking to show that Alphabet's Google (GOOGL.O) abused its monopoly of search and some search advertising. Alexander Austin, a former chief executive of Branch Metrics, said in meetings with Samsung, the Android phone maker was worried Branch's tools would cause conflict with Google. Specifically, Branch had to make sure that its searches remained within apps and never linked to the web. The government also called Anna Kartasheva, a Google executive, to ask her about emails that appeared to show Google was concerned about the presence of Branch Metrics software on smartphones.

Persons: Eric Gaillard, Alexander Austin, Austin, Branch, Anna Kartasheva, Diane Bartz, Josie Kao Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Branch, U.S . Justice Department, Google, Samsung, Thomson

☆ Mexico disperses thousands of migrants to ease pressure on southern border
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-26 | by ( Jose Torres | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TAPACHULA, Mexico, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Mexico moved to disperse a major build-up of migrants on its southern border with Guatemala by transporting thousands into nearby towns and setting up a camp to relieve pressure on local authorities, the government said on Tuesday. The National Migration Institute (INM) said it deployed 189 buses and 73 vans to move over 8,000 migrants from the southern city of Tapachula to other parts of the state of Chiapas and the southern states of Veracruz and Tabasco. Nevertheless, on Tuesday morning, thousands of people were still waiting outside COMAR's Tapachula offices, as migrants continued to cross the Suchiate River from Guatemala into Mexico, according to a Reuters witness. [1/8]Asylum seekers cross the Rio Grande river to finish their journey through Mexico to Eagle Pass, in Texas, U.S. as seen from Piedras Negras, Mexico, September 26, 2023. Discussing the railway concerns with U.S. officials at the end of the week, Mexico said the two sides had agreed on a series of measures to tackle the challenge.

Persons: Daniel Becerril, Biden, Jose Torres, Dave Graham, Grant McCool Organizations: Migration Institute, Mexican Commission, Aid, Refugees, National Migration Institute, REUTERS, U.S, Thomson Locations: TAPACHULA, Mexico, Guatemala, Tapachula, Chiapas, Veracruz, Tabasco, Eagle, Texas, U.S, Piedras Negras, United States, Venezuela, Brazil, Nicaragua, Colombia

The logo of Amazon is seen at the company logistics center in Lauwin-Planque, northern France, February 20, 2017. The FTC said that it was asking the court to issue a permanent injunction ordering Amazon.com to stop its unlawful conduct. Other allegations include that Amazon gave preference to its own products on its platforms over competitors also on the platform. During the Trump administration which ended in 2021, the Justice Department and FTC opened probes into Google, Facebook, Apple and Amazon. The FTC sued Facebook during the Trump administration and Biden's FTC has pressed forward with the lawsuit.

Persons: Pascal, Lina Khan, Khan, Trump, Republican Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Diane Bartz, Chris Sanders, Matthew Lewis, Nick Zieminski Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, U.S . Federal Trade Commission, Amazon.com, Amazon, Alphabet's, Google, Facebook, FTC, The Yale Law, Apple, Big Tech, Republicans, Justice Department, The, Republican, Democratic, Thomson Locations: Lauwin, France, Seattle

MIAMI (AP) — When Félix Llerena arrived in Miami in 2017, he quickly got involved in the city’s politically active community of Cuban exiles. He's more skeptical of the former Republican president. Both sides will have to respond to a Trump criminal trial next year in South Florida on charges that he mishandled classified information. The GOP has been winning in Florida since 2016, when Trump flipped a state that twice went for Democrat Barack Obama. “What the Democrats have lost are the younger Cuban American voters,” said Dario Moreno, a political science professor at Florida International University.

Persons: Félix Llerena, Donald Trump, He's, Joe Biden's, that's, ”, Ron DeSantis, Trump, Democrat Barack Obama, DeSantis, Dario Moreno, Univision's Jorge Ramos, “, Fidel Castro, Castro, Llerena, Fidel, Television Marti, Barack Obama, Obama, ” Llerena, Biden, Nikki Haley, Mike Pence Organizations: MIAMI, Cuban, Republican, Democratic, Cuban American voters, Republican Party, Miami, Democrats, Trump, Florida Gov, GOP, Democrat, Florida Democratic Party, Dade, Cuban American, Florida International University, Llerena, Television, U.S . Commission, Versailles, U.S, Ukraine, Biden, Republicans Locations: Miami, Cuban, Cuban American, United States, South Florida, Dade County, Florida, Washington, Cuba, U.S, “, Havana, Mexico, Haiti, Nicaragua, Texas

WASHINGTON (AP) — This probably wasn't how President Joe Biden envisioned his big foreign policy week ending. Biden on Thursday hosted Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House. "There’s no alternative.”Biden has stepped up his attacks on Trump's foreign policy record, casting the former president and his close Republican allies as lackeys for Russian President Vladimir Putin. White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan on Thursday said the U.S. has had and will continue to have “high-level” contact with New Delhi on the matter. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declined to comment Friday on the indictment.

Persons: Joe Biden, Biden, Donald Trump, Sen, Bob Menendez, Menendez, ”, Ross Baker, “, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Zelenskyy, ” Biden, Vladimir Putin, Putin, I’ve, Hardeep Singh, Justin Trudeau, Jake Sullivan, Narendra Modi, Richard Rossow, Karine Jean, Pierre, hasn't, Nicolás Maduro's, Barack, Trump, John Feeley, Feeley, Joshua Goodman Organizations: WASHINGTON, General Assembly, Republican, Ukraine, Senate Foreign Relations, Senate Democratic, Rutgers University, White, Capitol, Republican Party, Trump, United States Congress, Vancouver . Canadian, Nijjar, House, Indian, U.S ., Center for Strategic, Independent Studies, Biden, Associated Press Locations: Canada, India, Ukraine, Russian, New Jersey, U.S, United States, Russia, New York City, Vancouver, Ottawa, New Delhi, China, Washington, Caracas, Iran, America, Havana, Nicaragua, Panama, Miami

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s top diplomat, Alicia Bárcena, said Friday that President Andrés Manuel López Obrador wants to travel to Washington D.C. in early November to meet with U.S. President Joe Biden about immigration, development aid and drug trafficking. Bárcena's comments came just a day after López Obrador announced he will skip the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in November in San Francisco because his country “has no relations” with Peru. López Obrador previously claimed Peru’s current government was installed by a coup and that he still considers ousted president Pedro Castillo to be the country’s legitimate leader. It would not be the first time that López Obrador has skipped international meetings in the United States because of who else was or wasn’t invited. Last year, he skipped the Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles because Nicaragua and Venezuela were not invited.

Persons: — Mexico’s, Alicia Bárcena, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Joe Biden, Bárcena, Greg Abbott, Abbott, Venezuela “, Bárcena's, López Obrador, “, Pedro Castillo Organizations: MEXICO CITY, Washington D.C, U.S, Texas Gov, Venezuela, Economic Cooperation Locations: MEXICO, Washington, Mexico, Mexico’s, Darien, Colombia, Panama, New York, Ciudad Juarez, El Paso , Texas, Rio, Mexican, Tapachula, Guatemala, Mexico City, China, Asia, San Francisco, Peru, United States, Americas, Los Angeles, Nicaragua, Venezuela

☆ Explainer: What to know about October's 'ring of fire' solar eclipse
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-22 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/3] People watch the solar eclipse on the lawn of Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, California, U.S., August 21, 2017. WHAT IS AN ANNULAR SOLAR ECLIPSE? The one that will occur on Oct. 14 is a type called an "annular solar eclipse." It does not completely obscure the face of the sun, unlike in a total solar eclipse. They advise using safe solar viewing glasses or a safe handheld solar viewer at all times during an annular solar eclipse, noting that regular sunglasses are not safe for viewing the sun.

Persons: Mario Anzuoni, Will Dunham, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Griffith Observatory, Rights, NASA, Thomson Locations: Los Angeles , California, U.S, Americas, United States, Mexico, Central America, South America, Canada, Oregon, California , Nevada , Utah , Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Colombia, Brazil, North America

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